1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a novel anti-oxidant reducing substance providing a high anti-oxidant effect by using water as a solvent and a method of producing the same.
2. Description of Related Art
It has been known that active oxygen in the body results in the occurrence of various disorders. Further, it is known from various studies and reports that curcumin has an anti-oxidant effect of removing or stabilizing the active oxygen and the like. And also, a curcuma (turmeric) used as a herb medicine, spices or the like contains a great amount of curcumin (curcuminoide).
The curcuma containing a great amount of curcumin is used as a Chinese traditional medicine. As a result of studies on and after xe2x80x9cResearch and Development for Prevention of Cancer Through Vegetable Foodsxe2x80x9d started by The National Cancer Laboratory in USA, there is reported a research result that a yellow coloring component of the curcuma, xe2x80x9ccurcuminxe2x80x9d has effects of promoting secretion of bile in a liver to restrain various liver disorders and enhance an immune force in the body.
As a result of studies by a professor in Nagoya University (Japan), it has been confirmed that the curcumin having an anti-oxidant effect is slightly changed into a substance of tetrahydrocurcumin by binding with hydrogen in the body to develop a strong anti-oxidant effect. To this end, there have been proposed various methods of producing tetrahydrocurcumin having such a strong anti-oxidant effect. For example, JP-A-2-49747 discloses a method of producing tetrahydrocurcumin by dissolving curcumin extracted from curcuma into an organic solvent such as acetone or the like and subjecting the material to a reduction reaction with a metal catalyst such as Raney nickel catalyst or the like and a hydrogen gas. And also, JP-A-11-235192 discloses a method of producing tetrahydrocurcumins by acting mycelium and culture of a microorganism or a treating solution thereof on curcuma containing curcumin or the like.
However, these above conventional methods for the production of tetrahydrocurcumin have a problem that safety of the produced substance, quality of the produced substance itself and reliability of the production amount are lacking.
That is, the former production method uses metal catalyst, so that there is a problem in the edible and drinkable safety. And also, the reaction is carried out with gaseous hydrogen, so that there is still a problem in view of the gas control because there is caused a risk in the production.
On the other hand, the latter production method uses the mycelium and culture of the microorganism, so that if the environment conditions for growing the microorganism such as temperature, humidity, pH value and the like are changed somewhat, they immediately affect the quality of the substance to be produced. Therefore, it is very difficult to hold the quality of the produced substance and the production amount at constant level in the production method using the mycelium and culture of the microorganism.
Furthermore, tetrahydrocurcumin produced by these methods is a new tetrahydrocurcumin faded from a naturally originated yellow coloring matter. Since curcumin included in curcuma as a yellow coloring matter is proved to have an effect of controlling various liver disorders or enhancing an immune force in the body in addition to the anti-oxidant effect, however, it can be said that with such an extract of tetrahydrocurcumin it is difficult to expect a pharmaceutical effect more than the anti-oxidant effect. The inventor considers that the reason why the curcuma is used as Chinese traditional medicine for a long time is due to the fact that unknown components included in the naturally originated yellow coloring matter develop various medicinal effects in addition to the anti-oxidant action of curcumin or tetrahydrocurcumin. Considering polyphenol included in red wine, lycopene included in a red coloring matter of tomato, carthamine included in a red coloring matter of red safflower and the like, which are, for example, known as a naturally originated anti-oxidant substances, are included in a coloring matter, even when the anti-oxidant substance is specified to be curcumin or tetrahydrocurcumin, various medicinal effects proved by curcumin included in the yellow coloring matter are considered to be first developed by interacting the anti-oxidant substance with the other components included in the naturally originated coloring matter.
It is, therefore, important to considerably enhance the anti-oxidant effect of curcumin included in the curcuma and to provide a naturally originated safe anti-oxidant substance capable of utilizing without damaging other components included in the yellow coloring matter of the curcuma.
The inventor has developed an invention based on the following idea from a viewpoint of xe2x80x9chuman also rustsxe2x80x9d. That is, conversations that body odor was hated are heard in a crowded electric car, work place or the like, which is not merely solved by a language of old fogy or the like. Because, such an odor is an oxidation odor produced due to the lowering of anti-oxidation ability (SDO active action) with age, which is not a problem in the odor but is one of oxidation phenomena in any place of a body like a rust in iron or a patination in copper. Oxygen drawn for living changes into an active oxygen due to the lowering of a metabolism, which is an undesirable action of oxygen like oxidation of meat or fish. A visually observed place of such a phenomenon is an aged pattern or a spot. When such an aging phenomenon is carried out in the body, diseases due to the lowering of function or so-called adult diseases are caused, which are serious problems oxidizing any one of heart, liver, gastrointestinal tract, blood vessel, brain and the like in view of the national premium countermeasure. Since funds used to deal with aged diseases such as spot of brain in Alzheimer""s disease, which is free in children and youth, and the like becomes remarkably large and oppresses the premium system and aging countermeasure, the inventor has picked up curcumin included in curcuma and having an anti-oxidant property and searched content in accordance with kind of plant, natural growing conditions and the like from east Asia to Mexico and noticed a raw material having a highest concentration of curcumin and discovered that a strength thereof can be increased up to 45%, and as a result, the invention has been accomplished. Even in the textile industry, many companies try their utmost to develop deodorized underwear, but only a masking action is attained and there is no bodily solution. The body is oxidized due to the lowering of function with age. Although an oxygen-removing material may be used for a package of foods, the invention is to effectively utilized for fighting a breathing body against xe2x80x9crustxe2x80x9d.
The invention was developed under the above circumstances and is to provide a novel anti-oxidant reducing substance having an excellent anti-oxidant effect, which can safely be ingested as well as a method of producing an anti-oxidant reducing substance which can safely and stably supply product.
According to the first aspect of the invention, there is the provision of an anti-oxidant reducing substance to be reduced with hydrogen isolated from calcium ion using water as a solvent, characterized in that calcium powder obtained by adding a calcium ionized water to calcium powder and drying is added to a powdery curcuma. In the invention, curcumin in the curcuma is reduced by taking the anti-oxidant substance with water to develop a higher anti- oxidant action.
In a preferred embodiment, a ratio of calcium ion powder added to the powdery curcuma is 10-0.2%. The powdery curcuma and calcium ion powder are adjusted to a particle size of not less than 100 mesh.
In the other preferred embodiment, a starting material for calcium ion is powder of shell of oyster or powder of shell of abalone. The powder of shell of oyster (BOREI) is calcium powder obtained from the shell of the oyster, while powder of shell of abalone is calcium powder obtained from a shell of an abalone.
According to a second aspect of the invention, there is the provision of a method of producing an anti-oxidant reducing substance to be reduced with hydrogen isolated from calcium ion using water as a solvent, characterized in that calcium ionized water obtained by charging calcium into an electrolysis vessel of water is sprayed onto calcium powder and dried to form calcium ion powder and then the calcium ion powder is added to powdery curcuma. In this case, the calcium ion powder is used as a catalyst and water is used as a solvent to form free hydrogen, which reduces curcumin of the curcuma to enhance the anti-oxidant effect.
In a preferred embodiment, powder shell of oyster or powder of shell of abalone is charged into the electrolysis vessel of water to produce the calcium ionized water.